Top 5 Ephemeral Messaging Apps on Android

Best ways to message-and-forget on Android

Forget the open, sharing philosophy that's typified the rise of social networks. Disregard those instant messaging apps that make it too easy to send in haste and repent at leisure.

Ephemeral messaging is where it's at. A new breed of mobile apps is allowing users to send text, photo, and video images without worrying that they'll be widely distributed, or that they'll come back to haunt them.

Check out the Top 5 ephemeral messaging apps on Android.

The daddy of ephemeral messaging apps, Snapchat set the template for all the others to follow. The idea is simple: send text, photo, and videos messages in the knowledge that they'll disappear forever in a few moments.

Facebook's latest attempt to emulate Snapchat is a slick effort indeed. Slingshot's angle is that you can't view a photo or video until you've sent one of your own, stimulating conversation and back-and-forth sharing considerably.

Frankly adds more flexibility to the ephemeral messaging concept, even allowing you to recall messages sent in error. You can also customise the look of your messages quickly and easily, and even have anonymous conversations.

MIRAGE is all about sending speedy photo and video messages. You see what you want to shoot, then tap on a friend's profile picture to snap and send instantly. That message then disappears after one view.

Wickr's take on ephemeral messaging is all about privacy and security. You can send encrypted, anonymous messages without trace, with the messages themselves self-destructing at a moment of your choosing.